The holidays are upon us and many folks look
forward to enjoying the festivities but
fear gaining weight. A study conducted
several years ago by NIH researchers showed
that over the holidays, weight gain amounts
to about one and a half pounds. That is an
average, which means that some people gained
more and some gained less. If you wish to be
in the latter group, here are three tips to
keep in mind:

Cling to your commitment to exercise, even if
it means changing your usual routine to
accommodate holiday obligations. For example,
a large family can go to the local schoolyard
and play a game of soccer before settling down to
Christmas dinner. If that sounds too
ambitious for you, consider going for a walk
together.

Fill up your plate just once and don't go
back for seconds.

Focus on family and friends, not food. The
food is special and many dishes make their
appearance only at this time of the year. So
enjoy! But if all that food feels a little
threatening, take your mind off it by
catching up with members of your
family or your friends. To prepare yourself
mentally, take some "alone time" to think
about who will be there and what you can
share with each other about your lives.

Happy Holidays from Shape Up America!

Physical Activity: A Gift Worth Giving

by Rian Landers

In an age where kids are glued to the TV and
consumed by video games, it is more important
than ever to find gifts this holiday season
that will get people moving. The National
Association for Sport and Physical Education
(NASPE) recommends that children should
accumulate at least 60 minutes of physical
activity on all or most days of the
week.1
Kids instinctively want to play and move.
However, a recent National Institutes of
Health (NIH) study showed that children's
physical activity drops from age 9 to 15. By
age 15, most children fail to reach the
recommended level of physical
activity.2,3
Additionally, nationwide, only 48.8% of
adults get the recommended amount of physical
activity per week4 and 24.1% of adults
report that they receive NO leisure time
physical activity.5 Knowing these
facts, it
is important that we provide our loved ones
with the opportunities to turn physical
activity into a lifelong habit in which we
can all participate.

No matter what time of year, we can encourage
others to mobilize by giving gifts that
involve movement, games and companionship
with friends and family.

There are a variety of simple gifts that will
promote activity for any age or setting.
Balls for soccer, basketball, baseball,
tennis, etc., or other classics such as
Twister®, hula hoops, bean bags,
footbags (Hacky Sack) and jump ropes always
make good gifts. Use
your imagination; pair activity props
together to develop fun and creative new
games. Colder weather activities include
sleds, cross-country skis and ice skates,
while warmer weather ideas include bikes,
scooters, skateboards, inline skates
(Rollerblade®) and fishing equipment. So
before you buy that
video game, here are a few more
activity-based gift ideas for your family and
friends:

Fisher-Price Smart Cycle for toddlers

Kites

Slip 'N Slide® (outdoor water game)

Mask and snorkel

Frisbee®

Boogie boards

Pool or yard volleyball

Roller Racer® (seated scooter)

Skip It (skipping game)

Playskool Ages & Stages toys

Heart rate monitor

Pedometer

Snow shoes

Ball rebounder

Horseshoes

Baseball glove and ball

Tennis ball and racket

Ping Pong or table tennis

Trampolines

Indo Board® (balance trainer)

Skis or snowboards

If you are still having trouble getting the
video game lovers away from the TV or
computer, incorporate activities such as
Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) or the
Nintendo®
Wii/Wii Fit. Another alternative
could be
CDs or DVDs that teach dance or martial arts
moves. Parents can judge the age
appropriateness of these videos, and the
videos can conform to everyone's schedule,
making for fun gatherings with friends.

All ages can benefit from many of these
activities. Many adults, including seniors,
are enjoying the Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit,
while some continue to play the same sports
and games they did as kids. Adults seeking
new ideas should check out websites such as
Excitations
for a variety of unique and
active outings. Viewers can select different
geographic regions that offer exciting
experiences such as the flying trapeze,
canyoneering, kayaking trips, and much more!
Use the site to get ideas for local
adventures, and then research online how you
can create an affordable adventure right in
your backyard. For example, if a guided
mountain biking trip sounds fun, try
organizing a local bike outing as a holiday
gift for some friends. Pack a picnic lunch
and make a day out of exploring.

Gym memberships are another great option for
kids and adults of all ages. Gift
certificates and family memberships get
everyone involved, and for those who do not
enjoy the traditional gym setting,
alternative gyms such as rock climbing
centers or yoga studios can provide a family
event. Horseback riding lessons, gymnastics,
ice skating classes, and dance classes are
other fun options. Consider exploring your
local yellow pages or weekly newspapers,
which often advertise facilities' specials
with free day or week trials.

When it comes to gifts that promote physical
activity, the options are endless! Keep that
in mind this holiday season as you are out
shopping. It will benefit the health and
well-being of your loved ones, and
participating with them will create and
strengthen bonds for a lifetime!

Rian Landers is Program Manager for
Research for the National Association for
Sport and Physical Education (NASPE)

In the fall of 2006, a new video game system,
or "exergame," called the Nintendo®
Wii was
launched and is now a global craze with more
than 11 million sold in the United States
alone. The Wii involves physical movements on
the part of players, but does it burn
calories and improve fitness? To test this,
16 males and females, ages 20 to 29, had
their baseline fitness assessed and then were
trained to use the standard Nintendo Wii
bundled with Wii Sports. The specific games
tested were Wii baseball, boxing, bowling,
golf and tennis.

Each volunteer played all 5 sports in a
random order. Each game lasted 10 minutes
with a 5 minute break between each game.
Energy expenditure was assessed at 1 minute
intervals throughout the games. During the
final minute of each game, the perceived
exertion level was evaluated using the
validated Borg rating of perceived exertion.

The researchers concluded that all of the
games caused an increase in energy
expenditure (burns more calories), an
increase in heart rate and an increase in
perceived exertion compared to sitting
around. Boxing raised calorie-burn the most,
followed by tennis. Bowling and baseball
raised calorie-burn at intermediate levels,
while golf raised energy expenditure the
least of all the games.

Although parents may be pleased to know that
their children are burning more calories than
just sitting or playing with another video
game, it's important to keep in mind that
playing the real sport burns more calories
than playing the identical sport on Wii.

* This article is adapted from one bearing
the same title appearing in Nutrition
Today. 2008;43(5):198. The Nutrition Today
article identifies the American Council on
Exercise as the source of the data.

Abdominal Obesity and Risk of Premature Death

by Barbara J. Moore, PhD

For more than 50 years, we have known that
too much girth around the middle is
associated with an increased risk of killer
diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
A recent study published in the New England
Journal of Medicine focused on the impact of
abdominal obesity on mortality, and the
findings took a number of people by
surprise.1

The researchers examined the association of
body mass index (BMI), waist circumference
and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) to the risk of
death in 359,387 adults who participated
in a large European study called EPIC.*
(Waist-to-hip ratio is the ratio of the
circumference of the waist to the
circumference of the hips). The participants
were followed for an average of 9.7 years,
during which time 14,723 died.

People with the highest (top quintile) waist
circumference faced a doubled risk of dying.
The effect was slightly less strong, but
still significant, for people with the
highest WHR. BMI remained a significant
predictor of premature death in models that
included waist circumference and WHR. This
finding led the authors to conclude that both
general fatness (reflected by BMI) and
abdominal obesity (reflected by both waist
circumference and WHR) are associated with an
elevated risk of death. The researchers,
therefore, support the measurement of BMI,
waist circumference and WHR in assessing
mortality risk associated with obesity.

In this European study, the lowest risk of
death was observed at a BMI of 25.3 for men
and 24.3 for women. In the United States, the
range of BMI values associated with lowest
risk of both death and disease are 18.5 to
24.9 in both men and women. The following
table summarizes the values currently used in
the United States to evaluate abdominal
obesity and health risk:

Indicator of Abdominal Obesity

Value Associated with Lowest Health Risk

Waist Circumference

< 40 inches (adult male)
< 35 inches (adult female)
No values in children are currently available

Waist-to-Hip Ratio (WHR)

≤ 1.0 (adult male)
≤ 0.8 (adult female)
No values in children are currently available

*EPIC stands for European Prospective
Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition

Shape Up America! offers these simple,
convenient 1500
calorie and 2000
calorie menus to help
you eat healthfully while controlling your
calories.

My Story

Bree has a friend who appreciates her
despite her weight, and that makes her feel
very special.

I am 11 years old, yes I am young, I go to a
Catholic school with a lot of other people
and you think they wouldn't make fun of you
but they do. I weigh 122 pounds and I
exercise so much but I don't lose anything...
Just the other day me, my sister, my friends
Abby, Marcus, and Annie, we were all running,
walking and riding bikes to Sonic... Well
that day, a lot of people at school gave me
mean looks. While we were running, everyone
except for me and my sister ran ahead and I
got sick and threw up. When we finally made
it to where everyone else was, my friend Abby
said that it might be that I'm losing weight
and becoming skinnier again. We all stopped
for a second and I looked at Abby and said
"Thanks, you actually look at me as someone
else" and she said, "You have always been
skinny to me." So then while me and her were
running, I thought about what everyone at
school thought of me and I said to myself,
"You know what? I don't care what everyone
else thinks, at least I have a friend who
actually appreciates me!!!!"

Shape Up America! wants to hear about
you! If
you would like to share your personal
success story and be an inspiration to others
who desire to lose weight, simply use our story
submission system on the SUA Web site.

Recipe of the Month

Cod takes on a Mediterranean flavor in this tasty dish. Green beans, asparagus or broccoli are a nice accompaniment to the fish.

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